“If we don’t occupy ourself with everything, then peaceful mind will have nowhere to abide.”

– Shen-hui

Heze Shenhui (Chinese:菏泽神會/神会; Wade–Giles: Shen-hui; Japanese: Kataku Jinne, 684-758) was a ChineseBuddhist monk of the so-called “Southern School” of Zen and the dharma heir of Huineng…..

At the age of 14 he became a monk under Huineng, a disciple of Hongren and the founder of the Southern School of Zen. For a time Shenhui served as his attendant.

Several extant stories relate encounters between Huineng and Shenhui. In one, Huineng said to his students,

I have something which has no head or tail. It is nameless and can’t be described. It has no back and no front. Do any of you know what this is?”

Shenhui then said, “It is the source of all things. It is the Buddha Nature of Shenhui”.
Huineng responds, “I said it has no name and no description. How can you say it is the source of Buddha Nature?”
Shenhui then bowed and returned to his seat, but Huineng then proclaimed, “In the future if this youngster heads a monastery, it will certainly bring forth fully realized disciples of our school.”
Shenhui later went to Changan to receive ordination.

I wish it were but no, I cull my photos from the Internet. I particularly liked this photo so found a quote to go with the photo. Not my usual way of doing things and I don’t know how I ran across the photo but it hit a cord with me. ~~dru~~